Connecticut State Senator Saud Anwar bashes opponents of his bill that bullies Registrants in nursing homes

An anti-registry activist reported she was bullied by this so-called "doctor" who wants to name and shame and ostracise registered persons in nursing homes. What kind of doctor is he? I assume proctologist since his job revolves around assholes. 

Basing a law affecting thousands on an isolated incident is just plain stupid. 

https://ctmirror.org/2022/03/09/nursing-home-background-check-bill-sees-strong-opposition/

Nursing home background-check bill sees strong opposition

Measure sparked by alleged sex assault at East Windsor nursing home

by Dave Altimari

March 9, 2022

A bill that would require long-term care facilities to check if prospective residents have a criminal history or are on the sex offender registry before they are admitted drew some heated opposition Wednesday from organizations representing providers and an advocate for abolishing the sex offender registry.

The bill is sponsored by State Sen. Saud Anwar, whose district includes East Windsor, home of the Fresh River Healthcare nursing home. Last May, Miguel Lopez, a convicted rapist and a registered sex offender in Massachusetts with a warrant out for his arrest at the time, allegedly locked a female employee in his room at the nursing home and tried to force her to perform oral sex.9

Fresh River officials sent Lopez back to Massachusetts the same day that the incident occurred. He was eventually arrested on a warrant by East Windsor police and charged with attempted first-degree sexual assault, third-degree sexual assault and first-degree unlawful restraint. He is being held on $300,000 bail. His next court appearance is March 29.

Lopez wasn’t known to local police at the time he was admitted to Fresh River Healthcare because of a loophole in Connecticut’s sex offender laws, which do not require nursing home operators to inform state police when they admit a registered sex offender from another state into one of their facilities.

The law currently places the burden on sex offenders themselves to register, but Anwar wants to hold the nursing home providers more accountable by requiring them to determine if any potential resident is a registered sex offender by seeking a criminal background check through the state Department of Public Health.

The bill would bar long-term care facilities from admitting people with a “disqualifying offense” without a waiver. Disqualifying offenses range from assault, rape and kidnapping to burglary, criminal mischief and trespassing.

Mag Morelli, president of LeadingAge Connecticut, an association representing not-for-profit provider organizations serving older adults, told the Public Health Committee during Wednesday’s public hearing that “from an implementation perspective, this proposal raises numerous concerns.” 

“It appears that the facility will be barred from admitting an applicant until it receives notification of the background check from DPH. It is unclear how long an available bed might need to be held open for the duration of a background check,” Morelli said.

“Moreover, many applicants on waiting lists will need to be re-checked each time a bed becomes available given that a prior background check only remains effective for one month. While there are exceptions for short term rehab admissions, or for conditional admissions of 60 days or less, these situations will be affected by the discharge and eviction limitations discussed above,” Morelli said.

She suggested that the committee convene a work group to evaluate and address the concerns that led to the bill being raised rather than pass the proposal.

Others in opposition to the bill said that legislators were overreacting to an isolated incident and that the legislation as proposed would punish more people than it would help. 

“The proposal is extremely overbroad and would potentially disqualify anyone, including a vulnerable or elderly person, from admission to a long-term care facility, nursing home, or an assisted living facility because they were convicted sometime in their life of certain offenses, even if such conviction occurred decades before,” said Deborah Del Prete Sullivan, legal counsel for the Office of the Chief Public Defender.

Sullivan said that crimes for which a person could be denied admission include breach of peace, criminal trespass and criminal mischief.

“While serious violent offenses are included in the list of disqualifying offenses, there is no look-back in the proposal,” Sullivan said. “As a result, a person convicted of a felony while in their late teens or twenties would not be admitted even if 10, 20, 30 or more years had passed since the conviction.”

At one point, Anwar and Cindy Prizio, executive director One Standard of Justice, an advocate for restorative justice practices and a critic of the sex offender registry, got into a heated argument about the bill after she called it “a public policy disaster in the making” during her testimony.

“Please don’t allow one sensational crime to turn good intentions into bad policy,” Prizio said. “We all want to protect our vulnerable populations. OSJ stands ready to provide help to the committee in developing an effective solution.”

Prizio said there’s no “need to create a new bill every time there is an isolated high-profile incident” and that the bill is unfair to a class of people who already have had their rights “sucked dry by the system.”

Anwar responded that his bill is simply protect nursing home employees who had no idea a registered sex offender had been admitted to their facility.

“This provides a safety net for the people who work in long-term care facilities,” Anwar said. “There is a risk assessment that will need to be done, and that doesn’t mean someone still can’t be admitted to a facility, but just that the people who work there will know who they are taking care of.”

NH State Rep. David Love is letting out some of that rank "Derry Air"

New Hampshire State Rep. David Love is getting no love (except from this awards blog, of course) for falsely claiming a drag queen was groping kids at a local library and implies that drag queen was on the public registry. 

https://www.concordmonitor.com/Community-members-call-out-Derry-state-rep-s--false--testimony-against-drag-queens-45130357

DERRY, NH – A state rep may have made false, defamatory claims about two drag queens on the public record when he spoke in support of his bill ostensibly designed to protect children at libraries from sexual predators.

During a Feb. 10 hearing for a bill that would require public libraries to do a background check on any employees or volunteers before the House Labor, Industrial and Rehabilitative Services Committee, Rep. David Love (R-Derry) claimed the impetus for this bill was inappropriate behavior by drag queens who performed in front of children in Nashua and Derry in recent years.

Love told the committee during public testimony that this bill, of which he is the prime sponsor, was inspired by alleged misbehavior at a Drag Story Hour event at the Tupelo Music Hall last June. Michael McMahon, 22, of Danville performed as drag queen persona Clara Divine.

“After looking into it, I discovered that there was no background check done on this individual,” Love said.

Love, who did not attend the event, told committee members that the children there were at risk.

“This individual was dancing with kids, rubbing butts, just really going way too far, and there was never a background check done on him,” Love said.

“None of that was happening,” McMahon told Manchester Ink Link. “I had over 500 people in attendance and they can all vouch that none of those things happened. … Literally, he’s making up something. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Some who attended the event say Love’s characterization of the event is untrue. Derry Town Councilor Jim Morgan, who is a Republican and a gay man, wrote a letter to the committee to call Love’s claims false, saying at no point had McMahon touched a child.

“I find it distasteful that an elected member of the House would blatantly lie to the committee to provide a sense of reason to pass such a flawed bill,” Morgan wrote.

Love is a candidate in the Republican Primary to fill Morgan’s seat on the Town Council. Morgan has decided not to run for reelection.

Derry Town Councilor Joshua Bourdon said he and his wife and children attended the event and said no rubbing of butts or inappropriate behavior took place. He said it was a positive event that celebrated individuality and differences.

“I was disappointed to hear that Rep. Love lied to his peers,” Bourdon said. “Nothing like that was there.”

Tupelo owner Scott Hayward said Clara was on a stage three and a half feet high and never got off the stage and was about 20 feet from the children during the entire performance. After the event, a few kids came up and took pictures with Clara.

“That statement is about as false as it can possibly get,” Hayward said of Love’s description.

He said Clara taught kids about inclusion, respecting yourself and others, love and “everything I raise my kids to believe in.”

Hayward said Love’s comments make it sound like children are in jeopardy when they’re not.

“Maybe David should go to some of these shows, and learn something about love and inclusion,” Hayward said.

During the hearing, Love went on to say that he learned that there was a similar Drag Story Hour in the Nashua Public Library in 2019 and that it was later alleged that “the guy was a convicted sex offender.”

“It’s completely false, obviously,” said Robert Champion, who performs regularly as drag queen Monique Toosoon, and hosted the Drag Story Hour in Nashua Love alluded to.

Champion, 39, of Bow, said he was never accused or convicted of such a crime. Nor is he listed on any sex offender registry.

“I’ve been in the public eye for probably 20 years for being a drag queen, and I have never ever been accused of being a sex offender,” Champion said.

As it happens, Champion had been undergoing extensive background checks at the time of his 2019 Nashua show in order to adopt a son. He passed those checks and he and his partner of 15 years now parent a six-year-old boy.

“Obviously, I’m not a registered sex offender, I wouldn’t have been able to complete the adoption,” Champion said.

Morgan called the allegations slanderous.

“Mr. Love is not immune from civil lawsuit as he publicly demeaned and defamed both performers and by doing so is slander per se,” Morgan said in his letter.

Champion and McMahon both told Manchester Ink Link they are currently seeking legal counsel about the potentially defamatory claims.

“I care a lot about my drag and I like performing for the youth and I like performing for pretty much anyone. I don’t like things like that getting thrown around, messing with what I want to make into a career,” McMahon said.

Reached by phone Tuesday, Love told a reporter he was “told by a couple constituents” about the claim that McMahon was “rubbing butts” with children. When asked for clarity on what exactly that would entail, Love said he wasn’t sure.

As for the claim against Champion, Love said he “hope(s) to god he isn’t a sex offender,” but said he remembers reading about it in a newspaper over two years ago.

“I don’t know if it was a Boston Herald or the Union Leader or what,” Love said. “I’ve done more research on that and haven’t found it.”

Ultimately, Love said he still believes Drag Story Hours are not appropriate for children.

“All things aside, it’s adult entertainment. … I don’t know why we’re going to this extreme, societally-wise. But to me it’s not right,” Love said. “If you want to do it as adult entertainment, have at it. But for kids, leave it alone.”

Champion said there is a difference between adult drag shows and Drag Story Hour events geared toward younger audiences. While adult shows might push the envelope, with “crude” jokes and sexual innuendos, Champion said they censor themselves and tone down their performances when they have children in the audience of their shows.

“I certainly know how to tone it down for an audience of children, or in my case teenagers,” Champion said.

He compares drag queens to clowns and considers himself a sort of standup comedian. He said he tailors his material to his market.

“Honestly, as a parent, I don’t think background checks are a bad thing, but do we need it for a one time event that is completely supervised?” Champion said.

In fact, he said if there was any danger to the children during his 2019 show, he said it would have been more likely from the “haters” who were sending threatening messages to him. He said he was assigned a security detail who chaperoned him the whole time he was on the library premises.

“I volunteered my time to do that. I did that to be an inspiration or a role model for people who may have needed me at the time,” Champion said. “None of the drag queens I work with are bad people, I just don’t seem to get why people think drag queens are criminals or something.”

Hayward said it disgusts him when people try to equate crossdressing with sexual abuse.

“It’s just ridiculous to equate those two things. It’s insane,” Hayward said.

Morgan said Love appears to be motivated by prejudice.

“Perhaps Representative Love would be better served by resigning his office to focus on his past personal issues before trying to make laws that govern people he doesn’t seem to accept,” Morgan told Manchester Ink Link. “As it stands, he’s trafficking in prejudiced myths that all the LGBTQ community members are predators.”

During his testimony, Love shared his personal experiences as a victim of sexual abuse when he was six years old, the trauma from which he said resulted in years of destructive behaviors and substance misuse.

“It was a long time of suffering. A lifetime of suffering,” Long said.

“I’m sorry that he went through the experience that he went through,” Champion offered.

The Derry show was attended by dozens of families in the parking lot of the Tupelo Music Hall. Congressman Chris Pappas attended the start of the event to welcome Clara Divine to the stage, and local news media recorded the event.

“New Hampshire is a welcoming place where everyone should be proud to be themselves. The event in Derry was a family-friendly story hour that brought the community together, and it’s shameful that it’s being used as the reason to introduce this legislation that seeks to stigmatize the LGBTQ+ community,” Pappas said in a statement.

The event was moved to the Tupelo after original plans to hold it at Derry’s Taylor Library were canceled in response to calls for protest.

During Love’s testimony, he appeared to take partial credit for pressuring the library to cancel the event.

“And we did stop it at the Taylor Library in Derry,” Love said. “They decided to not have it. Then they were going to do it in the public park and there was an outrage over that. Then they did it at a private entity.”

In the race for Morgan’s Town Council seat, Love is running against Doug Flood, the founder of Pizzastock, an annual mental health awareness concert in Derry in memory of his son Jason Flood, who died by suicide in 2016.

These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.

Chris Hansen's ego is writing checks his body can't cash...

Hansen's MUGSHOT LOL

...nor can his bank account cover the costs, apparently. Take a seat, Chrissy!

Apparently, Chrissy's gig at Crime Watch Daily wasn't very profitable.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/celebrity/%E2%80%98to-catch-a-predator%E2%80%99-host-chris-hansen-charged-with-bouncing-checks/ar-BBSkBLm?li=BBnb7Kz

‘To Catch a Predator’ Host Chris Hansen Charged With Bouncing Checks

To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen was arrested and charged on Monday, January 14, after being accused of issuing bad checks, the Stamford Police Department in Connecticut confirms to Us Weekly.

According to police, the 59-year-old asked Promotional Sales Limited owner Peter Psichopaidas for 355 ceramic mugs, 288 T-shirts and 650 vinyl decals to use at marketing events. Psichopaidas said the merchandise was delivered in 2017, but Hansen failed to pay the bill of $12,998.05.

An arrest affidavit obtained by The Advocate claimed that the store received a check for the entire amount, but it bounced. Hansen apologized to Psichopaidas and attempted to make a partial payment. By April 2018, the store owner still had not received the money so he filed a complaint with police.

An investigator reportedly called Hansen, but the TV host never showed up at the police station. The newspaper reported that Hansen later promised Psichopaidas that his wife would drop off a check, but she never came either.

Investigator Sean Coughlin said in the affidavit: “I told Chris that I understood that he may have trouble, but that nearly $13,000 is a lot of money to a ‘mom-and-pop’ business and it is not fair that he accepted the material but hasn’t paid for it.”

Psichopaidas received a personal check from Hansen for $13,200 later that April, but it bounced three days after, according to The Advocate. The business owner then fired off an email to Hansen that read: “Peter … I truly thought I had this covered. I am scrambling to get it done. Please give me till the end of the day. I sold a boat to cover the rest of this and need to pick up the payment this afternoon.”

Hansen never sent another check. He turned himself in to police on Monday and was charged with issuing a bad check. He was released without bond after signing a written promise to appear in court.

The journalist hosted To Catch a Predator on MSNBC from 2004 to 2007. He now hosts Investigation Discovery’s Killer Instinct and the syndicated show Crime Watch Daily.

I can't wait to see the Law and Order SVU "Ripped from the Headline" for THIS Jury Trial: Guy flashes jurors to prove his innocence

I've heard of a hung jury, but this is ridiculous. But hey, whatever gets you off... and by that I mean get found Not Guilty in court.

https://nypost.com/2018/05/24/accused-rapist-shows-penis-to-jury-to-prove-innocence/

Accused rapist shows penis to jury to prove innocence
By Kevin Sheehan and Ruth Brown May 24, 2018 | 9:46pm | Updated

Accused rapist shows penis to jury to prove innocence
Desmond James

A Connecticut man on trial for sexual assault was allowed to drop trou and expose his penis to a stunned New Haven jury this week — to prove that it doesn’t match his accuser’s description.

The accuser says she was raped in 2012 by a stranger whose penis was lighter than the rest of his skin — and picked Desmond James, 26, out of a photo lineup as her attacker.

But James’ attorney on Wednesday argued that his client’s private parts are actually darker than the rest of his body — and the best way to prove it was to display his manhood.

Judge Elpedio Vitale agreed it was within James’ Sixth Amendment rights to defend himself by whipping his bits out in the hall of justice.

But when Vitale brought the two women and six men of the jury into the courtroom, he didn’t warn them what they were going to see — saying only the defense was going to offer “nontestimonial” evidence that is “sensitive in nature and highly personal.”

So the jurors were cold-cocked when James walked into the middle of the courtroom, dropped his pants, lifted his shirt and pulled out his penis — standing wordlessly for a full 10 seconds, according to people who witnessed the spectacle.

Shocked, at least one juror looked away, while others in the room tried to suppress grins and snickers at the XXXculpatory evidence, witnesses said.

James then pulled up his pants — and the defense rested its case.

“You saw a penis that is darker than the rest of his skin. For that reason alone, you must acquit,” defense attorney Todd Bussert said in closing statements on Thursday. Bussert noted that the display had brought more people into the courtroom that day.

“You may have noticed because of my client having to show his penis . . . the gallery’s a little more full today,” Bussert said.

He also defended giving the courtroom an eyeful, saying mere photos would have created too many questions about lighting, film and printers.

But prosecutor Stacey Miranda said the graphic exhibit was far from hard evidence — arguing James might have done something with his pubic hair since the assault.

“You saw the defendant’s penis — what was that?!” said Miranda.

“It is six years later. Do we have any idea of what she may have been seeing that night? What his manscaping was like at the time? What light was shining on it?”

Miranda also argued that the case didn’t hang on what was hanging between James’ legs alone — claiming that DNA evidence in the victim’s rape kit was also consistent with James’ genetic profile.

ConnectiCUT State Rep. Kevin NUMB-Skulczyck rips off AL Shiitake nominee Steve "Cut the 'Wurst" Hurst

If you haven't caught on, we're making castration puns. Yes, Kevin (numb)Skulczyck wants Connecticut to pass a castration law. My response is that he should be lobotomized for stealing such a hairbrained idea.

http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/20170516/skulczyck-sex-offender-castration-bill-priority-for-2018

Skulczyck: Sex offender castration bill a priority for 2018

Tuesday, May 16, 2017 at 12:13 PM, Updated at 7:31 AM

GRISWOLD - State Rep. Kevin Skulczyck confirmed Tuesday he would like to see chemical castration performed on convicted sex offenders as a form of punishment.

He said the proposal will be on his “top 5” list of priorities going into next year’s legislative session.

Skulczyck, a Republican who represents the 45th district, tweeted his idea on Sunday.

“This is about protecting the next victim and as law makers it’s our responsibility to look for every tool to protect the next generation,” Skulczyck said. “I want to work on a model bill that for the rest of the country to use.”

The details on whether both males and females would be required to undergo the treatment or which crimes would warrant castration were not made clear.

It also is not clear if Skulczyck would propose the state pay for castrations.

With chemical castration, drugs are used to reduce a person’s libido or sexual activity. It does not remove organs nor is it a form of sterilization.

Alabama State Rep. Steve Hurst is proposing a similar bill for the third time in his state. Hurst’s bill, however, proposes surgical castration. Skulczyck linked to a story about Hurst’s proposal in his tweet on Sunday.

Eight states -- California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Montana, Oregon, Texas and Wisconsin -- allow for chemical or surgical castration of sex offenders.

Critics of the practice, including the American Civil Liberties Union, say castration is a violation of someone’s rights. A castration bill, the ACLU has said, would violate the Eighth Amendment which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment.

Skulczyck, a freshman legislator, has also proposed other controversial bills during this year’s legislative session, including reviving the death penalty, suspending funding to “sanctuary cities” and repealing gun control legislation.

“It is a controversial bill, but I’m the guy to bring this up. I’m living in the moment and I’m going to take an opportunity to help the public,” Skulczyck said.

Connecticut to make "gunning an officer" a registerable offense

A Connecticut Yankee on the sex offender registry

If you never heard the term "gunning an officer," it is prison slang for masturbating while staring at an officer (or sometimes in plain sight of an officer though that's rare). It is one of those gross things people in prison must put up with but as an ex-con I can assure you I'd rather they flog their bishops while staring at Officer Jane Doe than poking some dude in the shower. After all, prisons quit conjugal visits years ago and the need for sex doesn't go away with a prison sentence.

Connecticut is not a state that tends to make waves with crazy sex offender laws, but this year, they decided to change that by finding a new way to increase their registry coffers by adding inmates caught masturbating in prison to the public sex offender registry. Honestly, why do we need this?

Well it could be worse. Your name could be OFFICER PETER GUNNING. Some stuff you can't make this crap up.

Can't get much worse than that.

http://www.westport-news.com/news/article/State-prison-officials-want-new-sex-crime-for-3517653.php


State prison officials want new sex crime for inmates
Associated Press
Published 07:43 a.m., Saturday, April 28, 2012
  
HARTFORD -- Connecticut prison officials are asking for a new law that would label inmates who commit lewd acts in their cells as sex offenders.


Department officials say it's an ongoing problem at prisons such as the high security Northern Correctional Institution, where some inmates purposefully masturbate in front of staff, often female guards, counselors or other prison workers.


"If they were on the outside and they did something like this, they would be arrested and held accountable as a sex offender," said Brian Garnett, a department spokesman. "And frankly, the same thing should hold true on the inside." Lisamarie Fontano, president of AFSCME Local 387, which represents prison workers, says about 500 such instances were written up at Northern last year. She said the problem involves a relatively small group of inmates, and has very little to do with sex.


"It's about power," she said. "If you can demoralize somebody, and some of the acts that women have described to me are absolutely horrific, then by all means the inmates feel more powerful over them." The legislation would make public indecency in a correctional institution a class D felony, punishable by up to five years in prison, a sentence that would be mandated to be tacked on to any current sentence. It also would designate the convict as a sex offender.


The bill would only apply to inmates who are deemed to be targeting staff with their activity, and would not be used when someone inadvertently walks in on an inmate in a private moment, Garnett said.


Garnett said it has proven difficult to charge inmates under current sexual assault statutes for behavior that happens in their cells.


Fontano said internal discipline hasn't deterred the behavior, but she believes inmates will stop if they know they will be labeled as a sex offender when they leave prison.


"This would be something that would be with them for the rest of their lives," she said. "This isn't something where you lose commissary privileges within the walls of the facility. Typically, a male prisoner does not want to be labeled as a sex offender." The bill has passed out of committee and is awaiting action by the full Legislature, which adjourns on May 9.


The move to pass legislation comes at the same time that the department is removing all pornography, material that contains "pictorial depictions of sexual activity or nudity," from the prisons. Inmates were given a year to get rid of all their porn and the total ban takes effect in July.


The ban is intended to improve the work environment for prison staffers who might be inadvertently exposed to the material.


Garnett said the two issues are not related, but said both are expected to have a positive impact on the work environment in the prisons "Our first responsibility is protection of the public and our second is protection of our staff," Garnett said. "That is always foremost in our mind and these are examples of what we are trying to do at this point in time."